National Bank Financial Raises Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO) Price Target to C$93.00

Key Points

• National Bank Financial raised its price target on Great-West Lifeco to C$93.00 from C$73.00, while keeping a “sector perform” rating on the stock.
• Several other analysts also lifted their targets recently, and the stock now carries an overall “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of C$86.36.
• Great-West Lifeco shares were trading near their 52-week high at C$91.37, while the company reported quarterly EPS of C$1.37 on revenue of C$8.37 billion.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by equities research analysts at National Bank Financial from C$73.00 to C$93.00 in a report released on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage presently has a "sector perform" rating on the stock. National Bank Financial's price target suggests a potential upside of 1.78% from the stock's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also commented on GWO. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Great-West Lifeco from C$83.00 to C$95.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Scotia boosted their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$78.00 to C$83.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Great-West Lifeco from C$70.00 to C$73.00 in a report on Thursday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Great-West Lifeco from C$70.00 to C$76.00 in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their price target on Great-West Lifeco from C$81.00 to C$95.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of C$86.36.

Great-West Lifeco Stock Performance

Shares of TSE:GWO traded down C$0.75 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting C$91.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 301,273 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,639,110. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 29.59, a quick ratio of 22.18 and a current ratio of 6.57. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is C$85.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$73.08. The stock has a market capitalization of C$82.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.67. Great-West Lifeco has a fifty-two week low of C$51.60 and a fifty-two week high of C$93.69.

Great-West Lifeco (TSE:GWO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported C$1.37 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$8.37 billion during the quarter. Great-West Lifeco had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 15.17%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Great-West Lifeco will post 4.4525194 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mei Dong sold 39,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$76.33, for a total transaction of C$3,007,402.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,721 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$207,693.93. This trade represents a 93.54% decrease in their position. Also, Director Edmund Francis Murphy sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$86.20, for a total value of C$3,448,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,784 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$757,180.80. This represents a 81.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Insiders have sold 119,200 shares of company stock worth $9,821,888 over the last 90 days. 70.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Great-West Lifeco Company Profile

Great-West Lifeco is one of the three big Canadian life insurance firms. With just under half of the firm's profit and revenue in Canada, Great-West also operates in the U.S. and Europe. In Canada, Great-West provides both individual and group insurance. In the United States, Great-West operates Putnam Investments and defined-contribution recordkeeping firm Empower Retirement. In 2020, Great-West announced it would acquire Personal Capital and MassMutual's recordkeeping business. In Europe, Great-West offers life insurance, annuities, and reinsurance primarily in the U.K., Ireland, and Germany.

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